麻豆高清 and Bute Council鈥檚 Home Energy Efficiency Team is committed to helping homeowners and private-rented landlords and tenants in 麻豆高清 and Bute improve the energy efficiency of their homes by offering non means tested grants for insulation measures.
Effective insulation contributes towards lowering fuel bills, reducing fuel poverty and in turn reducing harmful carbon emissions, ensuring you can live in a warm, comfortable home.
Through the Scottish Government鈥檚 Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme (ABS) non repayable grants are available to eligible homeowners and privately rented landlords and tenants to retrofit the following energy efficiency measures to your home:
- External wall insulation
- Park Home Insulation
- Internal wall insulation
- Cavity wall insulation
- Loft insulation
- Underfloor insulation
- Room-in-Roof Insulation
(Following a successful application the Council鈥檚 trusted Contractors BCA Insulation will determine the most suitable insulation measure(s) for your property)
Housing Association tenants should contact their Landlord in the first instance for advice and assistance.
Who is Eligible?
To qualify, you must be a homeowner or a privately rented landlord or tenant and be in Council Tax Band A, B or C
Homeowners in Council Tax Band D are also eligible if the property has an energy rating (EPC rating) of E to G
Island-based Homeowners, in addition to the above, in Council Tax Band E to H are eligible to apply to the Scheme if the property has an energy rating (EPC rating) of E to G. (subject to approval)
- Properties must be occupied and lived in on a full-time basis and be your main place of residence.
- Empty properties are not eligible.
- Second home and holiday let properties are not eligible.
- Grants will be approved subject to budget availability at the time of application.
- As this is a retrofit Scheme properties should not be under renovation.
If you do not meet criteria above there may be alternative funding options available to you through Home Energy Scotland 鈥 see 鈥淗ow to Enquire鈥 below.
How to Enquire
To find out if you are eligible please contact our referral partner free on 0808 808 2282.
Home Energy Scotland, funded by the Scottish Government, provides free and impartial advice and support to help you stay warm, make the best use of energy and save money on your energy bills.
They will help you find out if you are eligible for an ABS grant and at the same time offer you helpful energy saving information, discuss alternative funding options or signpost other agencies that they feel may be helpful to you.
Call free on 0808 808 2282 to speak to a Home Energy Scotland advisor or you can get more information at:
In addition, Home Energy Scotland may be able to give advice on other funding support, for example:
Warmer Homes Scotland - This 麻豆高清 is funded by the Scottish Government and offers funding and support to eligible households struggling to stay warm and keep on top of energy bills
Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan - can provide interest free loan funding for energy efficiency measures or to install renewable measures such as heat pumps or battery storage. Grant funding may also be available, please check current position with Home Energy Scotland.
Private Rented Sector Landlord Loan - is available in addition to ABS grants to support landlords which are ineligible for ABS to install energy efficiency and renewable energy measures to reduce the EPC rating of the property in line with Scottish Government Regulations.
Fuel Poverty
Current Scottish legislation describes a鈥痜uel poor household as one where:
- more than 10% (20% for extreme fuel poverty) of net income is required to pay for their reasonable fuel needs after housing costs have been deducted
- the remaining household income is not enough to maintain an acceptable standard of living, defined as at least 90% of the UK Minimum Income Standard (MIS) once childcare costs and disability or care benefits are deducted
The legislation provides for uplifts to be applied to the MIS鈥痜or households rural and island communities to take into account the higher cost of living in these areas.
(Source: Fuel Poverty (Targets, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Act)
The Council鈥檚 Welfare Rights Team aims to ensure that the residents of 麻豆高清 and Bute are not missing out on their entitlement to benefits and other related help by providing a free, confidential and impartial benefits advice, information and appeal representation service.
How to contact the Welfare Rights Team:
You can refer yourself (or someone else) to the Welfare Rights Team using the
Or you can phone and speak to Welfare Rights by calling 01546 605517
Climate Change
麻豆高清 and Bute Council have produced a Decarbonisation Plan to address Climate Change and are working towards being a 鈥榥et zero鈥 organisation by 2045. The plan supports and promotes activities undertaken by the Council鈥檚 Climate Change Board.
Climate change is expected to influence warmer, wetter weather in Scotland, providing more irregular and harsher weather conditions. This will have an adverse effect on housing through increased levels of condensation, damp and mould.
The Scottish Government鈥檚 Climate Change (Emissions Reductions Targets)(Scotland) Act 2019 sets targets to reduce Scotland鈥檚 emission of all greenhouse gases to net-zero by 2045 at the latest, with interim targets for reduction of at least 75% by 2030 based on 1990 levels and 100% by 2045 (net-zero emissions)
麻豆高清 and Bute Council are working towards these targets through the various energy efficiency 麻豆高清s and initiatives described within the Decarbonisation Plan. This ensures that we are working towards reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, adapting to climate change, and ensuring that advice and support is in place to assist people to live a more sustainable and energy efficient lifestyle.
Contact
If you have any queries regarding any of the information above please contact:
Jacqueline Westerman, Home Energy Efficiency Project Officer
Tel: 01586 555943
E-Mail: jacqueline.westerman@argyll-bute.gov.uk
or
Brenda Galbraith, Housing Improvement Assistant - Energy Efficiency
Tel: 01546 604254
Email: brenda.galbraith@argyll-bute.gov.uk
Or write to the Team at:
麻豆高清 and Bute Council, Kilmory, Lochgilphead PA31 8RT
ECO4 Flex (Energy Company Obligation) & GBIS FLEX (Great British Insulation Scheme)
ECO4 Flex and GBIS Flex are 麻豆高清s funded by the major energy companies to help make homes warmer and more energy efficient.
These 麻豆高清s are for homeowners or those in privately rented accommodation whose home is determined to be energy inefficient, are on low incomes or whose health may be affected if their home is too cold.
The Scheme is expected to run until March 2026.
The Scheme is not funded or administered by 麻豆高清 and Bute Council, and we are unable to offer advice or assistance in regard to the Scheme.
How it helps
If your home is eligible you may be entitled to free or reduced cost energy efficiency measures such as insulation, installing a heat pump or fitting solar panels, helping to keep your house warm, save energy and lower carbon emissions. The measures offered are determined by survey.
Who can get it
You may be eligible for ECO4 Flex if:
- Your gross household income is less than 拢31,000.
OR:
- Your household meets two of the following 鈥減roxies鈥:
Proxy 1: Living in the first, second or third decile on the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD)
Proxy 2: Entitlement to a low-income Council Tax reduction
Proxy 3: Vulnerability on the grounds of the following health conditions:
鈥 Cardiovascular conditions 鈥 Respiratory conditions 鈥 Mental health conditions 鈥 Disabilities 鈥 Older age (65 years and older) 鈥 Caring for young children (from newborn to school age) 鈥 Pregnancy
Proxy 4: Eligibility for free school meals
Proxy 5: Support from an existing Local Authority scheme
Proxy 6: Referral from Citizens Advice or energy supplier
Proxy 7: Identified through energy supplier debt data
(Please note that the following proxy combinations cannot be used:
Proxy 1 with Proxy 3 & Proxy 7 with Proxy 5 or 6)
OR:
- Households with a person suffering from a severe or long-term health condition, which is adversely affected by living in a cold home:
A cardiovascular condition
A respiratory disease
Limited mobility
Immunosuppression
How to apply
If you think you might qualify:
-
Contact Scarf () who are Managing Agents for the Scheme in 麻豆高清 and Bute via e-mail: eco@scarf.org.uk
Or contact one of the following approved installers:
BRB Electrical Limited
Diversity Energy Solutions Ltd
Gas Care Heating Services Ltd (T/A Boiler Genie)
Green Home Systems Limited
MPC Energy Ltd
Pride & Joy Home Services Ltd
info@pridejoyhomeservices.co.uk
Union Technical Services Ltd
- Once you have engaged an Installer from the list above, they will carry out a survey of your home to see what energy efficiency measures can be offered and they will check if you are eligible.
- The installer will collect any documentation or evidence they require to prove you qualify.
This information is then provided to the Managing Agent to assess if the household may be eligible for ECO4 Flex grant funding.
麻豆高清 and Bute Council sign a declaration to confirm eligibility but have no other role in the process of ECO4 Flex-funded works.
Companies undertaking ECO4 Flex-funded work for householders do not work for the Council.
Any works are a private arrangement between a householder and their chosen Installer - in the same way as any other works they may decide to have carried out in their home.
NB: The final decision on whether a household receives ECO4 Flex measures is made by the Energy Suppliers therefore inclusion in a Scarf Referral / Local Authority eligibility approval will not guarantee installation of measures.
Decisions by energy suppliers on whether to install a measure may depend on:
- Whether a property meets SAP band eligibility criteria
- A survey carried out by suppliers, or their agents/installers and installation costs calculated,
- The energy savings that can be achieved for a property,
- Whether suppliers have achieved, or are close to achieving, their targets, and
- Other commercial considerations
- Following initial eligibility checks, the installation company will carry out a survey of the property to determine if measures can be taken forward. If measures are possible then they will engage in a contract between you and them, complete the installation of the agreed works and provide any after care.
Any queries or concerns about the Scheme should be directed to the Installer or eco@scarf.org.uk .
Please Note
The Installers listed above have been appointed by and pre-approved by , who are the Managing Agents for the Scheme. Scarf are a charity/social enterprise who have been offering free and impartial energy advice for over 35 years.
麻豆高清 and Bute Council is not liable for the work Installers carry out and do not monitor or guarantee the work of these Installers. All contracts are entered between the homeowner and the Installer.
No other Installers can carry out ECO4 Flex work in 麻豆高清 and Bute, only the ones listed above.
Neither 麻豆高清 and Bute Council or these companies will ever knock on your door or cold call you.
For free and impartial energy efficiency advice please contact Home Energy Scotland on 0808 808 2282. If you are not eligible for ECO4 Flex or GBIS Flex they can give you free and impartial advice and discuss other routes to funding for energy efficiency measures.
Statement of Intent
The document below outlines our statement of intent in relation to accessing flexible eligibility funding through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme.
麻豆高清 and Bute Council Statement of Intent V2 (published 09/06/2025)
麻豆高清 and Bute Council Statement of Intent V1 (superseded 09/06/2025)
/sites/default/files/2024-01/signed_eco_4_statement_of_intent.pdf
